


Then We Will Say Goodbye

by Historywriter2007



Series: My Fate is in Your Hands [2]
Category: Hunger Games Series - All Media Types, Hunger Games Trilogy - Suzanne Collins
Genre: Alternate Universe - Nazi Germany, Alternate Universe - World War II, F/M, Resistance, occupied france
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-21
Updated: 2018-12-30
Packaged: 2019-06-14 03:25:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,132
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15379623
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Historywriter2007/pseuds/Historywriter2007
Summary: Rye Mellark dreamed of a life where he could finally be himself, but he was never given that option.  He needed to find a way to not only survive but to fight against the very government he'd sworn his allegiance.  As a double agent, he was good at hiding his emotions, that was until one woman changed it all.  Now he had to find a way to fight and keep her safe, but at what costs.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is Rye's story from the My Fate is in Your Hands universe, I teased this at the end of the last story. It is helpful but not necessary to read it. Thanks to honeylime08 for her beta skills and Mega-aulover for all her help and support- not to mention her fighting for the perfect Rye.

Berlin 1934

 

“Rye, wake up.” Light illuminated the room as William Mellark switched on the lamp in his oldest son’s room.

 

Rye rolled over and saw his father rushing to his side. He felt like he’d just gone to bed, and it was late. “What time is it?” 

 

“Midnight. I need you to listen to me.” William tried to keep his voice calm, but there was fear behind his words. Rye sat up and faced his father who continued, “We don’t have a lot of time. They are coming for people, I don’t know if they will come for me, and I need you to listen carefully.  If they take me, you need to get your brother and the Everdeen girls.” He handed a small document case to Rye. “All the papers you need are here- they will get you out of Germany. You will need to buy tickets on the first train to France, then get to England. There you will meet up with a man named Boggs. He will keep you safe. Don’t say a word to your mother, and don’t let Ilse tell you not to take Katniss and Prim. You must do this. Do you understand?” 

 

Rye’s eyes grew wide. He was only seventeen, and his father wanted him to take not only his younger brother but two other girls out of the country. It didn’t make sense to him. “Why do we have to do this?”

 

William sucked in a breath, “Because you don’t have a better choice. If I am taken I don’t know what that will mean for you and Peeta. Mr. Everdeen has been taken already. We have fought against Hitler, and I don’t know if my name is on that list too. I can’t leave you here without hope, and I will be at peace knowing you are gone from here. Please promise me.” 

 

Rye had never seen his father like this. His normally calm demeanor was replaced by a frantic man. He knew his father didn’t care for Hitler, but he didn’t know his father was doing something about it. On the other hand, he knew his mother felt Hitler was doing good things for Germany. She would certainly push him and Peeta into doing more with the Nazi’s, something his father had kept them from. If his father asked them to leave, he would do whatever he needed to keep them safe. “I promise father, I’ll take them from here if I need to.”  

 

William hugged his son before a loud knock at the front door drew his attention. He stood, straightened his coat, and walked through the door leaving Rye with the documents and little time to put his plan in action. 

 

February 1938- Austria

 

Rye sat up in bed, the knock still ringing in his ears. He could never figure out why his dream always ended with a knock that had never actually come. In reality the night had been long, but the sun rose, the SS never showed up and his father had survived. After Peeta heard about Mr. Everdeen, he rushed to Katniss’ side while Rye and his father made a plan. This plan had worked for the past five years as Hitler’s powers grew and the drums of war grew louder. Rye looked down and stared at the blonde woman sharing his bed. Today was the last day he would see her, and he couldn’t quite decide if he was relieved or saddened by it. He tried to keep his distance from women like her, the ones he wooed because he needed information, and it was getting old already.  He’d been in Austria since the Nazi invasion, and as an SS officer he was put up in a local family home. The family who was forced to house him was actually excited by the prospect of having a Nazi SS Officer staying with them. They were happy the Nazis came and “reclaimed” their land to create a “Greater Germany.” 

 

The invasion was nothing more than moving men and materials. Rye knew it was just the first of many moves the Nazis would take to create their Third Reich, and at some point they would encounter a country that would actually fight back, but that was not the case this time. Instead they were treated like liberators, at least by most of the people. What the Austrians didn’t see was the treatment of some of their neighbors who dared to speak out against the Anschluss. A treatment that was brutal and swift.  

 

Rye pushed the covers off and started getting up when a hand grasped his arm. 

 

“Do you have to leave so early?” Her blonde hair was a mess, proof of what they’d done the night before, her blue eyes were still drooping with sleep. 

 

Rye laid back beside her and cupped her cheek in his hand. “Yes. I have orders to return to Berlin.” 

 

“When will you return?” 

 

Rye gave her a sad smile, one that was fake and perfected over time. One that made the women think he was really upset about leaving, even when he wasn’t. “I don’t think I will be returning this time. I’ve been told I will be receiving a new assignment.” 

 

A tear fell from the woman’s eye. They’d only been together for a short time, and the whole time he was using her to get information for the resistance. Of course, she didn’t know this. Rye used his talents to get what he needed, and he found that his good looks and charming personality could get him close to the women, thus close to the males in their lives. When she brought him home to her father, who was an ardent Nazi and loved the idea of his daughter being with an SS officer, he knew he was in. The man quickly trusted Rye and gave him more information about the Austrian Nazi Party than he should’ve. People and places as well as where the money flowed to and from. All this was going to be useful one day, at least he hoped it would be. 

 

Rye caressed her cheek, “Please don’t cry. We knew this was always a possibility. I’ll write you as soon as I can, if I can. We wouldn’t want to put the mission in danger, right?” 

 

She nodded and allowed Rye to pull her into a hug. It was moments like this that he actually envied his brother. Peeta was now married to the women he’d been in love with since they were kids.  He used to mock his brother and try to get him to play games with women like he did, but Peeta never did give in. Rye wondered how it would feel if he actually liked, or dare he say loved a woman. He didn’t even love his own mother, who was cruel to both of her boys growing up. He wanted to blame that for his womanizing ways or tell himself it was his job, but he knew better. He was making the choice to use his charm and bed these women, and it was all his own doing. 

 

Eventually, he was able to untangle her limbs from his and got out of the bed to quickly dress. His train was leaving in two hours, and he still needed to gather his belongs from his room. One last kiss and he was gone. 

 

As the train pulled into the Berlin station, he scanned the platform and saw Peeta in full uniform. Rye noticed how many looked at Peeta with both admiration and fear. A member of the SD did that to people. No one knew if they were truly safe when an SD officer was near, and it was apparent. 

 

As he disembarked from the train, he was stopped by a young boy who saluted him. The boy smiled when Rye returned the salute and turned to his mother. “Look mama - I’m going to be just like him when I grow up.”

 

Rye tried to keep his face blank, but his stomach sank at the boy's words. He wasn’t someone to look up to, and it was especially worse that the boy wanted to be a member of the SS. He was fighting so that boys like him had a better future. 

 

The mother nodded at Rye and addressed her son, “Yes, but you don’t need to bother him, I’m sure he is busy. Thank you for stopping.” She took her son's hand and pulled him away before Rye could respond. 

 

He reached Peeta and they saluted, a requirement since they were in public, then hugged. It had only been a couple of months since Peeta’s wedding when they last saw one another, and Rye was still unsure why he’d been called back to Berlin, but those questions would have to wait. 

 

Peeta grabbed one of Rye’s bags and started walking towards the car. “So how was the trip?” 

 

“Fine, boring, but it’s a lot better by train,” Rye joked. “So how is married life?” 

 

“Fine, not boring,” Peeta smirked at his brother as they got into the car. 

 

“So I guess you are using some of the moves I suggested?” Rye remarked. 

 

Peeta shot him a glance, “I’m not telling you about my love life - all you need to know is we are just fine.” 

 

Rye put his hands up in mock surrender and changed the subject to learn what was happening with the rest of the family. 

 

William Mellark met his boys at the door. This was the last time the whole family would be together for the foreseeable future, if not forever, but he didn’t want to dwell on it. After everyone said their hellos, he sent Rye upstairs to get cleaned up before dinner. Rye pushed the door of his bedroom open. It looked exactly like it did when he left home the year before. He quickly stripped his uniform off and showered, grateful that he would be able to leave it off for once. Being in Austria as an occupation force meant he was in uniform every day. It was exhausting for him to look in the mirror at the black uniform that stared back at him. 

 

When Rye got to dinner he found the seating arrangements had been changed. Katniss was now in his seat next to Peeta, leaving him across from his old place between an empty chair and Haymitch. As they began dinner no one else arrived, so he assumed it was just for looks to even out the places. The family talked and joked as if there wasn’t a war brewing causing them to live in fear of their clandestine actions being found out. There was no Hitler, recorded lines, or Gestapo waiting for them, they were just a family, having dinner and enjoying each others company. 

  
  


As the family finished the Black Forest Cake William had brought from the bakery, a stillness fell over the table. Rye noticed the look Peeta gave Katniss who immediately coaxed Prim and Ilse out of the room, leaving only the Mellark men at the table.

 

Haymitch leaned back and took a large gulp from his glass. “Everything is going to change in a few days. We all need to be on the same page to make it work.” 

 

Haymitch then looked to Peeta who started to speak, “I am being sent to America. I’m supposed to be a double-agent.” 

 

Rye looked at him in confusion, “What about Katniss? Are they making you leave her here alone?” 

 

“No, Katniss and Prim are coming with me. Haymitch was able to convince them it would give me a better cover story. On the other hand, we are in the crosshairs of Oberscharführer Bruno Schneider. He seems hellbent on making an example of us now.” 

 

“Why? What did you do?” 

 

“We exposed the lackluster way he does things.” Haymitch interceded, “He didn’t realize Peeta had gotten married, and when it was brought up Heydrich got angry. I’m sure there were words after we all left Berghof.” 

 

“What do you mean Berghof?” Rye leaned forward and shot a look at his brother. “Did you actually meet Hitler?” Peeta nodded solemnly. “Holy shit, you sat across from that man and didn’t do anything? I don’t know how you did it,” Rye continued. They all knew what he was inferring - they should’ve taken a shot when they had the chance.  

 

“We did it because to do anything else was suicide and would harm our cause.” Haymitch proclaimed. “One day someone will get to Hitler, but that was not the day. We have too much on the line to act on impulse.”

 

Rye looked at his father who was silently conveying to him to calm down, a look only a father can give. He leaned back in his seat and waited for the rest of the story. 

 

“Now that all that is out of the way,” Haymitch continued, “with Peeta gone things are going to change. I need to find someone I can trust added to my office, and we need to prepare for the coming war. You know Austria was easy, but eventually, that will change, and I need you to be with the first group into Hitler’s new conquests. That way we can find out who we can trust and who needs to be watched. As Hitler grows his territory, so must we.” 

 

“What do we do then? My unit now has orders to stay put, and I don’t see that changing,” Rye returned. 

 

“That’s why you are being reassigned.” The sound of the bell interrupted his next words, and moments later a man Rye hadn’t seen in years entered the kitchen. “Just in time, Gale, I believe you know Peeta and Rye.” 

 

Gale acknowledged both of them then shook William's hand.  Rye stared at him in disbelief. They’d gone to school together and joined the HJ when both Gale’s father and Katniss’ were taken, neither of which returned. Although they never talked about it, the three men at the table always stuck together, a silent understanding that they were not there because they wanted to be, but because they felt they had to. Their only duty at the time was to keep their families safe, and for the Mellark boys it turned into a mission to end Hitler. Gale took the empty seat next to Haymitch, his dark features standing out next to the blonde Mellarks. Gale had gone into the Army, but the last Rye had heard he was stationed locally and had not seen action. 

 

“Welcome to the party,” Haymitch joked as he raised his glass in Gale’s direction. 

 

“Thanks, but I’m not really sure what I’m doing here.” He responded. 

 

“Before we start, I want you to read this.” Haymitch pulled an envelope from his pocket and handed it to Gale. 

 

Gale looked it over. “What’s this?” 

 

Haymitch answered, “a letter from your father. As you know, he worked with me after the war. When it started to get dangerous for him he gave this to me. Told me to give it to you when the time was right. This is that time.” 

 

Gale stared at him for a few moments before opening the letter. After a cursory glance, he looked back at Haymitch in shock. He realized Haymitch was telling the truth - the handwriting was a match to his father’s, something he didn’t think he would ever see again, but here it was right before him. When he was done, he looked back at Haymitch and William looking for answers. 

 

Haymitch spoke up, “he was one of us. He just didn’t make the right alliances at the right time, and it put him in danger. He knew one day you would be willing to take his spot and help us fight. It’s going to be dangerous, and at times you will do things you never imagined, but God willing, we will prevail and help bring an end to the Nazi’s.” 

 

Gale looked at Rye and Peeta. The three of them had done so much together, and it looked like he would be doing more. “What do I need to do?” 

 

Haymitch smiled. “You will be joining the SS with Rye. You will leave for training in a few weeks, and then you will be with the expeditionary forces. Hitler has plans to expand his territory, and you will be there when he does, but first, what do you know about being a spy?” 

  
  



	2. Berlin, 1939

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You did not bear the shame.  
> You resisted.  
> You bestowed the eternally vigilant symbol of change  
> by sacrificing your impassioned lives for freedom, justice and honor.  
> -Plaque at the German Resistance Memorial Center, Berlin, Germany

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have finally gotten chapter 2 up. Sorry for the delay, real life has been crazy and I finally got a chance over Christmas Break to finish this chapter--it was half done for at least a month! I added a new character and with it a new couple- welcome Gadge!
> 
> Thank you to the amazing @honeylime08 for betaing for me and sticking with me. Also to @mega-aulover for some guidance and letting me know about Chelsea Handler’s Who Do You Think You Are episode. It gave me some great ideas for the story!

Rye looked around the room. He’d never seen so many people feeding their own egos in one place in his life. He was already tired of this life, although it had some perks, namely the women. His strong Aryan looks brought women flocking this his side. Many of them wanted to be with Rye. Some didn’t care if it was only for one night, and some wanted him to get them pregnant so they could have a child from a member of the SS. It was considered prestigious to do so, and the government made women think this was their duty. Even though he would bed many of them, he always made sure to take precautions. He may be a ladies man, but he didn’t want to have a string of children he knew nothing about. It was times like this that he thought of his little brother. He’d only been with one woman, but their relationship was sealed with love. Rye never felt much for the women he was with, even if he was pretending to care to get information from them. Tonight was one of those nights, but this time he was the one being hunted. He knew it was happening too. She wasn’t very good at her job, so he let it go on just to liven the night up.

The woman sashayed her way over to him, champagne glass in hand. He added it to her long list of errors as he noticed the way the liquid moved in her shaking hand. She was pretty enough, but in a way reminded him of Katniss. She was small with dark hair and light eyes, but even though she was nervous, she had an aura that she could kill if she needed, and that made her more dangerous. 

“Good evening,” the woman said with a smile on her red-painted lips. 

Rye could tell immediately that she was not German. In fact her accent, which she fought hard to hide, was most certainly Russian. He quickly scanned the room again. It was filled with men in Nazi uniforms and their dates, and the few other men had armbands, so she was likely on her own. He had to make a decision: did he play along and find out who she was or cut off the conversation? 

Rye plastered a grin on his face, the one that showed off his dimples, “Good evening to you, too. Are you enjoying the party?” 

The woman sighed, “I actually find these terribly boring. What do you say we get out of here?

Rye was taken back by the brazenness of her words. It was clear she had an agenda and was new to the game. He decided it was in his best interest to leave immediately. He wasn’t sure if he was marked before she got there or if she just went to the first single man in the room, but this would most certainly end poorly for one of them, and he had too much on the line.  

“I actually need to stay - orders - but maybe we will meet again,” he replied. 

She seemed very put off but forced a smile before turning her attention to another man. Rye breathed a sigh of relief that she moved on so quickly. This could mean he hadn’t been specifically targeted, but he needed to contact Haymitch about the incident to be sure. He’d had enough of the event, so he found Gale, who was equally done, and they snuck out the back doors.

The streets of Berlin were relatively quiet. Although only Jews had a curfew, the chill of the night drove many others inside. Rye and Gale entered the waiting car and headed towards home. Rye had been in Berlin waiting on new orders since Peeta left for America. Meanwhile, the paperwork came through from Gale’s transfer to the SS. Once his heritage had been traced and his loyalty to the Reich proven, everything was finally in order, and Gale was reassigned to Rye’s unit. Now all they could do was watch and wait. 

The car made a turn only to end up in the middle of a roadblock. Several clubs and restaurants lined the street, and he’d been at one of the clubs just the night before doing recon on a prominent SS officer. Feeling the need to find out what was happening, Rye asked his driver if he knew. 

“They may be breaking up a Swing Party, they’ve been really cracking down on those kids lately.” The driver replied. 

“Why? Aren’t they just some high school kids that like to listen to swing music?” Rye followed up. 

“They are starting to become organized, they are fearing it is a type of resistance. I heard it’s bigger in Hamburg. They made it a big deal the last few weeks I was in the HJ, we were not to associate with anyone who was involved with the movement. In fact we were to turn anyone in that was possibly going to a club, or let them know if we found out about a party.” 

Rye nodded, “I wonder why we haven’t heard of this.” 

The driver shrugged his shoulders, “my guess is your concerns are a bit larger than a group of unruly kids, sir.”  

“Regardless, I’d like to see what is going on. Can you please stop the car?” 

The car pulled to the side and he and Gale exited. He quickly realized the troops were indeed HJ members, and he found the highest ranking officer.

“Good evening,” he stated while giving a salute. The officer turned to face him, the annoyed look quickly disappearing as he realized who was standing before him. The officer straightened up and saluted back but didn’t respond. Rye sighed, hating how everyone was so intimidated by him just because of the uniform he had on.  If he had his way he wouldn’t be a part of this at all, but after it was clear Hitler was going to take full control there were few options. His family decided to fight, and their connections and reputation allowed them to do it from the inside.

Gale stared at the officer, who still didn't budge. “We want to know what’s going on here.” 

“Sir, we were told there was a meeting of Swing Kids. We’re emptying the club now.” 

Some of the HJ were too zealous with their orders, literally dragging people from doors. Others were in fist fights, and a few were eyeing the women who’d been taken out. 

“What is going to happen to these kids?” Rye demanded. 

“Some will be given warnings, as long as they were not warned before and didn’t cause an issue. Others may be sent to reform camps, or military service.” The officer answered. 

Just then Gale’s eyes grew wide as he noticed someone familiar. Rye followed his line of sight to see a woman glaring at an HJ who seemed to be trying to make a deal. It didn’t take long for him to realize who the woman was as well. “Have that woman brought here,” Gale demanded. 

The officer looked over to the wall where the HJ’s were lining people up. “Sir, we are supposed to take a report on everyone who…” 

Gale stood straight, interrupting with a booming voice, “are you questioning my authority?” 

The officer shook his head. “Good,” Gale continued.  “Now I want that woman brought over here and I want the names of all those who were here tonight. If we find out anything questionable happened here, especially with the women, there will be consequences. They may not be following the rules but they are Germans, and you are to be cultivating men of honor. Do you understand?” 

The officer nodded and yelled to some of his charges to bring the woman to them. To a few others, he started belting out orders about decorum and to make sure they hurried up. 

The woman fought the HJ until she saw who was waiting for her. She then turned and walked toward Gale and Rye. Her blonde hair was messy from dancing, fighting, or both, and her cheeks were red from the chill in the night. She stood before them. “So did daddy send you to get me?” 

Gale scoffed at her, “no, Madge we found you all on our own. Get in the car, and we’ll take you home.” 

“No, I think I’ll stay and take my punishment.” She bit back. 

Rye, knowing it would be better for him to get through to her, took a hold of her arm and pulled her closer to speak privately. To the others it may have looked rough, but his grip was gentle, and she moved in without a fight. “You have to come with us. You may think you are fighting them, but you are putting a lot of people in danger, including us."

She pulled back and looked at Rye for a second, her blue eyes searching his for something. Understanding dawned, and she got into the car. Gale sat in the front as Rye slid in next to Madge Orders were given to get to Rye’s home, and they were off.    
  


Rye pushed the door open and motioned for Gale to take Madge to the kitchen while he went into the office to phone Mr. Undersee. What Madge didn’t know was that her father was a part of their network, people who were fighting from the inside. He knew she didn’t like the Nazis - Madge made that clear when Katniss married Peeta, and she cut off all contact to her one-time friend. 

Gale and Madge were engaged in a stare-down when Rye entered the room. They had some kind of history. Even though he didn’t know what happened between them, he was sure it wasn’t good. “Your father’s on his way over. Do you want something to drink?” 

“No. I don’t want to deal with my father. You said I was putting people in danger - what did that mean?” Madge inquired. 

“I think it’s best we wait for him,” Rye said as he started shedding the top layers of his uniform before he beckoned to Gale. 

“What is the issue with you two? Rye asked. 

Gale looked down and huffed. “We were friends, but I pushed her away. I thought she wanted more, and I had my eye on someone else.” 

Rye gave his friend a confused look. He didn’t remember Gale ever telling him about a crush. “Who did you have your eye on?” 

Gale clenched his jaw. “I don’t know if I should tell you.” 

“Why? Who was it? Katniss?” Rye asked with a chuckle, that was until Gale looked away. “You had a crush on my sister-in-law?”

Glad raised his hands in surrender. “Yes, and in all honesty when I came home from training I was planning to ask her out. That was until I found out she’d already married Peeta. I just assumed that considering our families were close, we’d get together one day.” Gale let out another breath, “but she’s happy with Peeta. and I’d never do anything to ruin that. I swear.” 

“That still doesn’t explain why Madge hates you.” Rye added.

“She may have thought something was going to happen with us. It’s my fault that I led her on, then ended up telling her I was going to date Katniss. I was sent away for training soon after, and that’s where we are now. It’s been a few years, but apparently she can hold a grudge,” Gale said wryly.

“Well, I’m about to offer her a chance to work with us, so you better fix this. The way she’s looking at you is scaring even me.” Rye confessed as he glanced back at the kitchen. 

Gale mocked, “she’s scaring big, powerful, ladies man Rye Mellark? That’s something I never thought I’d see.” 

Rye put his hand on his friend’s shoulder, “Gale, even the most powerful man can be brought to his knees by the right woman. You’d be wise to remember that.” 

They walked back into the kitchen, and a few moments later Madge's father walked through the backdoor., He pulled her into a hug, one she halfheartedly returned. “What were you thinking?” 

“I wanted to go. It was just a bit of harmless fun.” 

Mr. Undersee glared at her. “Do you know what could’ve happened to you?” 

“I know. I would’ve gotten a warning, maybe need to go to some meeting. It’s not a big deal,” Madge sneered.

“That’s not all,” Rye intercedeed. “Madge, your actions tonight could’ve put extra scrutiny on your family, and we can’t have that.” 

“Why? You’re all Nazis - it’s not like anything will happen to you.  You take what you want, when you want without fear. You even force people to marry you. I know what Peeta did. Katniss never wanted to get married, and next thing you know she looks like she’s the perfect Nazi wife. I know he had a crush on her, but I never thought he would force her to marry him. What did he do? Threaten Prim?” 

“Is that what you think happened? That Peeta forced her? Well, he didn’t - if anything he saved her and Prim.” Rye pulled his hand down his face in frustration, “Madge, Katniss and Prim are of Jewish ancestry. Peeta did everything he could to protect them. If he hadn’t married Katniss and gotten her Aryanization, who knows what could have happened, especially if the hardliners have their way. Not everything is as it seems.” 

Mr. Undersee sighed and sat down across from Madge. “Look, I know you think we are all card-carrying members of the Nazi Party, but we are a part of something different. There’s many of us who don’t agree with Hitler, but we can’t come right out and say it. We have the special ability to be on the inside and fight from within. That’s why you can’t bring more attention to us, your actions put all of us in danger.” 

Madge looked at the three of them with wide eyes. “What are you talking about?” 

Gale finally spoke up, “we are the resistance Madge, and if you want to help fight, I can think of a better way.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Swing Kids (Swingjugend) were a group of 14-21-year-old’s, mainly from middle and upper-middle-class families who loved jazz and swing music as well as Western (British and American) fashion. Formed in Hamburg in 1939, the movement was mainly in Hamburg and Berlin. The members opposed National-Socialist ideology, especially the Hitler Youth and as a form of rebellion did not join. In some cases, there was more organized resistance, but it was generally not a large movement. In 1941 a violent crackdown started (I moved it up a bit for my timeline), this included the arrest of those found at the clubs. Punishments were anything from monitoring to being sent to concentration camps. A good movie that really dives into the culture is Swing Kids (1993) 
> 
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swingjugend
> 
> It may seem strange to many of us, but as I had in the first story in this series there was an actual resistance to Nazism in Germany, especially in the Foreign Office, intelligence community and even the military. Approximately 77,000 German citizens were killed for one or another form of resistance, thousands more were put into concentration camps for suspected or actually engaging in some type of opposition. The goal was to create an opportunity for a coup to remove Hitler and his inner circle from power. The closest they got to this was the July 20, 1944 attempt by Claus von Stauffenberg, featured in the movie 2008 Valkyrie.  
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_resistance_to_Nazism  
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memorial_to_the_German_Resistance

**Author's Note:**

> The Anschluss was the annexation of Austria into Nazi Germany, prior to there had been strong support from people of all backgrounds – not just Nazis – in both Austria and Germany for a union of the two countries. On March 12, 1938, the Nazis marched into Austria and were greeted by cheering Austrians with Nazi salutes, Nazi flags, and flowers. It was the first big test of the Wehrmacht machinery. Although the invading forces were badly organized it didn't matter because the Austrian government had ordered the Austrian Bundesheer not to engage. 
> 
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anschluss
> 
> The SS wore black uniforms designed by Hugo Boss and were considered the best of the best. Members had to prove their heritage to be considered. 
> 
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hugo_Boss_(fashion_designer)  
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schutzstaffel


End file.
